Goodluck Jonathan, a former President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is reportedly working for the All Progressives Congress (APC), Nigeria’s main opposition party.
Naija News reports that the allegation was made by the APC through its National Publicity Secretary, Yekini Nabena, on Friday, where it slamed the slammed the Peoples Democratic Party for not being a worthy opposition.
According to the APC, Jonathan is working for the ruling party and the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari, whom he contested against in 2015, because he is a ‘progressive’ statesman.
The claim by the APC is coming after some APC chieftains visited the Abuja residence of former President Jonathan last Friday. The visit by the APC chieftains to Jonathan, who contested in the 2011 and 2015 presidential elections on the platform of the PDP, raised the stakes in permutations for the 2023 general elections.
In 2015, Jonathan lost his re-election bid to Buhari and conceded defeat, thereby ensuring a smooth transition of power. Since then, the former Vice President has been active in his role as a Special Envoy of the Economic Community of West African States.
After the visit of the APC chieftains to Jonathan, the PDP had said the APC was ‘desperate’ by the visit of its party bigwigs to the ex-president on his 63rd birthday.
However, reacting on Friday through Nabena, APC said, “We are not desperate. Goodluck Jonathan has been working for this government, he has been going to all African countries. If he is not a progressive person, he won’t have been working for this government.”
On the other hand, Diran Odeyemi, the PDP Deputy National Publicity Secretary, who also spoke on the programme, however, said there was nothing progressive about the APC, stressing that the ruling party has failed in all critical aspects of governance and ‘many’ of the governors of the ruling party were set to join the PDP.
The PDP Deputy National Publicity Secretary said the defection of Governor Dave Umahi of Ebonyi State and the recent movement of the Senator representing Adamawa North, Elisha Abbo, from the PDP to the APC were isolated cases of persons who used the ladders of the PDP to rise but decided to break it on getting to the top.
Odeyemi said, “Many APC governors are talking to us. Perhaps, Nigerians have not seen the end of these activities. More governors of APC are coming to join us. 2023 will destabilise APC.
“The question we have to ask ourselves is that what has been the achievements of the APC now that will now warrant people to join them if not for selfish reason?
“Is it about the economy, is it about security or is it about the country’s infrastructure that will make people now see them as a formidable party to join? I say, no.
“We are not bothered. Nigerians know the party to vote for in 2023. We believe power belongs to the people and we are relying on the people to make the decision in 2023.”
